May 31, 2007 - 05:28 pm .- Pope Benedict XVI could visit Quebec at a time that coincides with the 49th International Eucharistic Congress in July of 2008. The announcement was made in Aparecida, Brazil, by the archbishop of Quebec, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, who said he hoped to receive a response from the Pontiff by the end of the year.

May 31, 2007 - 12:38 pm .- The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, has called for the recognition of “all the civil rights” of minorities in Turkey, including Christians, pointing out that the rights of Muslims are protected not only in that country but throughout Europe.

May 31, 2007 - 12:36 pm .- The Spanish daily “La Razon” is reporting that the process of beatification for 36 Benedictine monks who died in prisons and concentration camps in Communist Korea will soon begin.

May 31, 2007 - 12:34 pm .- The Executive Director of the Education and Family Association of Honduras, Gracia de Villeda, warned this week that gender ideology “has led us to become enemies of the family.”

May 31, 2007 - 12:31 pm .- The rector of the Basilica of Guadalupe exhorted Mexican politicians this week to create laws that defend life and said the Catholic Church would always be committed to defending human life.

May 31, 2007 - 11:54 am .- The Fifth General Conference of Latin American bishops, inaugurated May 13 by Pope Benedict XVI at the Brazilian Marian shrine of Aparecida, ended today with the reading of a final message, the approval of a lengthy document, and the announcement of a “Continental Mission.”

May 31, 2007 - 11:07 am .- Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver is calling for support for the current Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 (S. 1348). The bill is currently in debate in the U.S. Senate. The debate is expected to continue into early June.

May 31, 2007 - 11:04 am .- A new tie-exchange movement, originating at the St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store in St. Louis, hopes to promote a spirit of spontaneous generosity among men. The “Totally Instantaneous Exchange”, TIE for short, came about when a simple compliment was given.

May 31, 2007 - 10:51 am .- Archbishop Adrian Doyle of Hobart has confirmed plans for a new $12-million Catholic high school in Kingston that would introduce a new policy requiring at least 75 percent of the students be Catholic.

May 31, 2007 - 10:33 am .- Australia's bishops are discussing Amnesty International’s new policy to advocate for the decriminalization of abortion worldwide, with the intention of presenting a unified response.

May 31, 2007 - 10:23 am .- Cardinal Keith O’Brien, the highest ranking prelate in Scotland, spoke out strongly against the evils of abortion this afternoon. He also issued a warning to Catholic politicians, as well as any Catholic, who in any way cooperates in encouraging or allowing abortion.The occasion for the cardinal’s address was the 40 year anniversary of the passage of the 1967 abortion act in Scotland, which legalized abortion.

May 31, 2007 - 09:37 am .- The Holy See and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced the establishment of diplomatic relations today. The creation of a relationship at the ambassadorial level is a boost to the Christian population of the UAE, which numbers around one million people. The new diplomatic arrangement was arranged because of a desire to promote “bonds of mutual friendship and of strengthening international cooperation,” according to a Vatican communiqué.